Weather forecasts that are right on target

27 July 2012 - The weather can have a big effect on archery, arguably more than any other sport. As the archery competition gets underway at Lords Cricket Ground on Friday, archer Mike Peart reveals how he stays on target whatever the weather.

The link between weather and success in archery is perhaps one of the most obvious of all the Olympic sports. Wind, of course, is the archer's biggest enemy, but temperature and particularly humidity also play a part, affecting the equipment the athletes use.

Mike Peart said, "The weather, and especially the wind, has a fundamental impact on the score. Even if I aim dead-centre, the arrow can drift, two, three, four feet away and sometimes I can miss the target.

"I need to know how to prepare. I use the Met Office Weather app to see what the temperature is like, and to see if I need to take my waterproofs or thermals. If it has a high wind forecast I will set up my bow a little bit heavier, prepare mentally and set a different target. It would be unrealistic to think I would set a high score when it is blowing a gale."

Met Office forecasters will be providing accurate wind forecasts to LOCOG ahead of and during the Olympic and Paralympic Games archery competitions.

The forecast for the opening day of the archery competition indicates that Lords Cricket Ground will be rather cloudy with the chance of showers through the course of the day, although these are likely to ease and clear away through the late afternoon and evening.

You can keep up to date with our weather forecasts on our website or with our specific London 2012 Olympics forecasts or by downloading the Met Office iPhone or Android apps for free.